While we were away we spent a day in Herm. It’s the only Channel Island that I had not been to, and therefor the one without any memories attached. This alone I could appreciate, but it turned out that I was completely and utterly charmed by the tiny island with less than fifty year-round residents.

We spent the day on the most perfect beach. Seashell beach. It had white sand and the sea was the clear blue-green found on tropical post cards. The sand was made up of millions of the tiniest, most itsiest-bittsiest perfectly formed seashells. It was all very magical.

I found baby sand dollars, and made a joke about calling them sand pounds - which was entirely ill received. But, all the same, I thought it was funny. Generally, I’m not much of a squealer… but the baby shells, they were just too much for me. I came home with a big bag of shells, collected from all the beaches I went to. Usually I bring home a piece of jewelry as traveling mementos, but this time, it was all about the shells.